The state of Tennessee will submit its application to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to receive grant funding to pay an additional weekly unemployment benefit to claimants who meet the eligibility requirements of the Lost Wages Supplemental Payment Assistance program (LWA). If approved, the grant will fund a $300 weekly payment. This new LWA payment is in addition to the Tennessee Unemployment Compensation, Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation, or Extended Benefits payments currently available to unemployed Tennessee workers. The grant requires claimants to receive at least $100 in state or federal unemployment benefits each week to...

Active COVID-19 virus numbers in Coffee County edged up on Tuesday, but just slightly. There are now 305 active cases in Coffee County, up from 302 the prior day. Since testing began in March, there have been 630 total cases in Coffee County. Of these, 321 have recovered and four people have passed away. Coffee County’s total population is about 57,000. Meanwhile, active cases across the state fell by about 1,089. This comes a day after active cases across the state fell by 1,142 the previous day. Since testing began in March, there have been 1,386 confirmed COVID-19 related...

On Tuesday, Kim King, Commander of VFW Post 10904, presented a National Citation of Recognition from the Veterans of Foreign Wars national headquarters to Westwood Middle School. The Principal, Ms. Julie Miller accepted the citation on behalf of the school. The VFW recognized Westwood Middle School for promoting citizenship education both in the school and outside in the community. The VFW Citizenship Education Teacher (middle school) Award for the state of Tennessee is a member of Westwood Middle School (Jim Dobson), but without the support of the teachers, staff and students of Westwood Middle School that award would not...

Tullahoma Police Department chief Jason Williams announced Tuesday the promotion of one of his officers. Brooke Arthur was promoted from the rank of Corporal to the rank of Sergeant at TPD. Arthur will be overseeing a newly created patrol shift as a result of the Tullahoma Police Department’s transition to 12-hour work shifts. According to TPD, Arthur brings five years of experience to the...

By Nadia Ramligan, Tennessee Public News Service Advocates are asking Gov. Bill Lee to supply Tennessee’s long-term care facilities with rapid coronavirus testing, with the goal of being able to reunite residents with their families faster. Since early spring, long-term care facilities across the state have closed their doors to visitors because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Rachel Blackhurst, public policy and advocacy director with the Alzheimer’s Association’s Tennessee Chapter, said because social isolation among people with dementia can speed decline and worsen cognitive abilities, having access to rapid-turnaround testing is critical for residents, staff and visitors. She added that...

After 20 years at the helm and oversight of many major projects, Manchester Parks and Recreation Director Bonnie Gamble has notified the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen that she plans to retire. Gamble worked for the Parks and Recreation Department as director for nine years before taking a job with the state of Tennessee. She returned to the city in 2010 to take over as Parks Director again. She informed the board of her intention to retire full time on June 30, 2021. “I still plan to be active in the community and work part time for the...

Tennessee gas prices, on average, increased only slightly over last week, rising nearly a penny. The Tennessee Gas Price average is now $1.90 which is four cents less than one month ago and nearly 44 cents less than one year ago. Average price in Coffee County is $1.91 as of Monday afternoon. “Gas prices across the state are likely to fluctuate during back to school season, but we expect them to remain low,” said Megan Cooper, spokesperson, AAA – The Auto Club Group. “We’ve likely seen prices at the pump peak for 2020, barring any major hurricane(s).” Quick Facts...

There are now 302 active cases of COVID-19 virus in Coffee County, down six from the prior day. Since testing began in March, there have been 617 total confirmed cases in Coffee County. Of these, 311 are classified as recovered, and four people have passed away. Numbers now remain lower than early last week, when the high of active cases hit 321. Meanwhile, across the state of Tennessee active cases dipped by about 1,142. There are currently about 36,240 active cases in the state. There have been 1,345 confirmed deaths related to COVID-19 since March, and 5,881 people have...